Buying A New Or Used Car.

[Neeranam]

I'd really appreciate it if anyoone with experience of buying cars could help me make up my mind.

I want to buy a car buy for about 500,000 baht. I have about 100,000 down.

I am not rich, in fact relatively poor as far as expats go.

Would I be stupid to buy a new car? Maybe I won't be in thailand in 5 years and have to sell it. I heard someone say that as soon as the car leaves the showroom it loses a lot of value.

I have a contact who is a manager at a toyota showroom. I would be sure of getting a second hand one from him that doesn't have any 'hidden problem' like a crash.

What would you do? What have you done?

Oh, I don't give a toss about how it looks, prestige and all that - I just want to go from A-B.

I travel about 300 km a week.

Cheers.

[RamdomChances]

All depends on how much you can afford a month, and whether you have enough for the initial down payment on a new one (I think the lowest are about 150,000 down 20% usually).

IMO cars and pick-ups hold their value pretty well here and you get much better interest rates when buying new, so I recon if you want to pay monthly buy new if you can, If you buy second hand try to buy outright as usually 2nd hand really hit you with the intrest payments.

You seem to be just off the ammount needed for a new small car Jazz sort of thing).

[rcalsop]

All depends on how much you can afford a month, and whether you have enough for the initial down payment on a new one (I think the lowest are about 150,000 down 20% usually).

IMO cars and pick-ups hold their value pretty well here and you get much better interest rates when buying new, so I recon if you want to pay monthly buy new if you can, If you buy second hand try to buy outright as usually 2nd hand really hit you with the intrest payments.

You seem to be just off the ammount needed for a new small car Jazz sort of thing).

It sounds like you could afford a base model new one ... Honda City idsi manual at a push or the bottom of the line Toyota Vios under 500 000 manual box and steel wheels ..

My advice try to go new in Thailand ,until you know the ropes stay off second hand ,unless you actually know the history of the car

[chanchao]

At first glance second hand cars seem overpriced in Thailand.

However it's important to keep in mind that cars hold their value much better here than in Europe/USA/Aus/etc. This because maintenance is so much cheaper. Really old cars actually DO have a lot of value because you can keep them running for a lot less expense than running an old car in the West. Thus depreciation is overall a lot slower. <end of rant>

I've bought both new (wife's) as well as second hand (mine). I'm very happy with both. My wife's truck will likely stay in the family for pretty much forever, no intention of ever selling it.. It's 4 years old now, 90K kilomters and being an Isuzu truck, that's mere puberty, it's just getting warmed up..! It'll go on for another decade without breaking a sweat. I think if you buy knew you should be committed to hold on to it for a long time, to off-set the initial depreciation loss of driving it out of the showroom.

Indeed with a second hand car you don't lose the initial depreciation of turning a new vehicle into pre-owned (by you) If you buy new I would not put a lot of extra options on, or pimp it up in any way.. (I know you're not going to on your budget, just ranting in general here) This because money for those options doesn't really come back to you when selling. The one main option that's worth to go for is an automatic gearbox.

If I were you <and this is VERY personal> I would buy a second hand car for around 300K baht and save some money. If you have 100K down then you should not want to own a car that costs even 500K let alone more. Especially also because you claim the status thing means little to you. Some people just 'have to have the latest model, that red license plate. Use this to your advantage, count it as a blessing and go for something less sexy.

For 300K you can buy a VERY reliable but VERY un-sexy pick-up truck, or something like an older model Mitsubishi Lancer, Toyota Corolla, etc. Go for mainstream models, don't go buying old Kia's, Daewoos, Opels, Hyundais and other fringe brands. This way you take less risk in further depreciation.

Check out the used car magazines with all the tiny thumbnails, noting especially the price vs. build year. There's a sweet spot for most cars where they don't depriciate that much anymore. Especially pick-ups reacha point where they almost seem to stop depriciating assuming they're kept in good running condition.

[Thaipwriter]

I had the same question buzzing round my head about 10 months ago, here is what i did.

I decided not to but brand new but to look for a vehicle that was about 12 months old. After a lot of reseach on the web i concluded that cars of this age had depreacitated to a level where there value seemed to remain more or less contant. It seems new car drop in value by about 20% in the first year and after the first year they do not go down in price as quickly as they would in the uk for example.

I then thought about which car to go for, my primary aim was to buy one that i would have little problem selling again. This is easy to do, just look for the most popular car in your city.

I bought a top of the range 1 year old toyota Soluna Vios sporty with 23k kms on the clock for 490,000 baht, the new price at the time was 649,000 baht .

I kept the car for 6 months for the rainy season and then bought a motorbike and decided to sell the car. I sold it easily for 450,000 baht. which means i lost 40,000 over the 6 months, the equivalent of paying 222 baht per day "rental"

I will probably do the same next year for the rainy season!

Neer....i know your are located in Khon Kaen, have you ever seen the car auction that they hold at the car park at Tesco on Mittphap.

I stood and watched one day and i saw a 2004 Chevrolet optra 1.8lt go for 365,000 baht. I looked on the interent the same day and saw a similar model advertised for 499,000. This is a whopping saving and well worth checking out if your savvy with the lingo and cars.

good luck

[Thaiboxer]

The prices of some second hand cars are not much cheaper than a new model. A good, used car from an owner who took care of it may be a good bet for you. That way, you won't be paying for a long time. If you find a used vehicle with low mileage that interests you, have a trusted mechanic put it up on a lift and inspect the under side with a flashlight. Do the same for the engine compartment and passenger compartment. Finally, do an extensive test drive at different speeds and on different roads. Let the car idle for about ten minutes when you first start it and look for blue or black smoke coming out of the tailpipe. If the mechanic gives the all clear, go for it. You may get something really nice that you couldn't afford if it were new.

[PeaceBlondie]

Back home, I had some terrible luck buying used, and some fairly good lucky buying used (except motorcycles anywhere in the world: new and Japanese ran great; used were pieces of doodoo).

A famous test drive editor once said, "I wouldn't buy a used Ferrari if a direct heir of the Rockefeller family volunteered to be the hood ornament."

[terdsak_12]

If you buy a Toyota or Honda, 3-4 years old max with service records you should be OK, mileage shoud be average 15-20,000KLMs per year. Just make sure it hasn't been wrapped around a lamp post, but expect most cars to have picked up a few bumps here and there.

[RamdomChances]

For 300K you can buy a VERY reliable but VERY un-sexy pick-up truck, or something like an older model Mitsubishi Lancer, Toyota Corolla, etc. Go for mainstream models, don't go buying old Kia's, Daewoos, Opels, Hyundais and other fringe brands. This way you take less risk in further depreciation.

I generaly agree with that, but some of the fringe brands can be seriously cheap second hand. My brother-in-law had a Daewoos he bought for 50,000 bhat, no real problems and the parts although had to be orderd were'nt that hard to get he eventually sold it on for 50,000 as well. There a few people around her with old Peugot 205's/305's all bought for the 50,000 mark that seem to be going fine. If your not doing great distances it may be an option.

RC

[Thaiboxer]

Terdsak mentioned something important; and that concerns accidents. Many people in the States will take two undamaged halves of the same model car and simply tack weld them together, repaint the vehicle, put in a new interior, etc and you have a nice looking car. These rebuilt wrecks are very dangerous to be driving around in. I can imagine that this sort of wreck rebuilding/selling happens here as well so do make sure you inspect the vehicle THOROUGHLY for any signs of previous wrecks. Look for paint overspray inside door jams and check to make sure all the body panels line up evenly. Check the frame of course and remember that cars which have had front end collisions may have bad AC systems since the compressor is located in the front of the engine compartment and takes a beating in front end accidents.

[jbowman1993]

Terdsak mentioned something important; and that concerns accidents. Many people in the States will take two undamaged halves of the same model car and simply tack weld them together, repaint the vehicle, put in a new interior, etc and you have a nice looking car. These rebuilt wrecks are very dangerous to be driving around in. I can imagine that this sort of wreck rebuilding/selling happens here as well so do make sure you inspect the vehicle THOROUGHLY for any signs of previous wrecks. Look for paint overspray inside door jams and check to make sure all the body panels line up evenly. Check the frame of course and remember that cars which have had front end collisions may have bad AC systems since the compressor is located in the front of the engine compartment and takes a beating in front end accidents.

I would also vote for buying new. My Dad has been a car mechanic for going on 40 years, and is still today. He always warned me away from used cars. You don't want to buy other people's problems. You don't know what kind of previous accident history the car might have had (especially at those big used car lots), you don't know what kind of driver the previous owner was. Maybe he was a leadfoot, and has inflicted a lot of heavy wear and tear on the drivetrain and braking system.

You know what kind of driver you are, and you have a 3 year warrenty with the new vehicle, as well. I vote new!

Chock Dee krup!

[Neeranam]

Neer....i know your are located in Khon Kaen, have you ever seen the car auction that they hold at the car park at Tesco on Mittphap.

I stood and watched one day and i saw a 2004 Chevrolet optra 1.8lt go for 365,000 baht. I looked on the interent the same day and saw a similar model advertised for 499,000. This is a whopping saving and well worth checking out if your savvy with the lingo and cars.

good luck]

I've never seen it, mate. What day is it on?

I heard there was one near Lotus though.

Would there be the option of finance do you think?

[tom yum goong]

I was facing this conundrum a few months ago.

In the UK i wouldn't dream of buying a new car. Cars depreciate so quickly and there are so many second hand bargains to be had. It doesnt make sense to buy new. But in Thailand, most cars hold their value very well and a 5 year old car may still be worth more than 50% of its original price.

I looked around for ages for a good deal on a 2nd hand car. Something for around 300k that wasnt more than 6 years old. It was pretty slim pickings.

I also thought about buying a nearly new car, anything up to a year. In many cases the price was only marginally cheaper than new. And at the back of my mind was always the worry that why would they be selling a car they had just bought? Very likely it was beacuse it was a lemon.

In the end i bought a new car. I didn't want to spend that much money on something just to get from A to B and if i could have a got a good deal for around 300k i would have taken it. But after looking around for ages, i don't think such a thing exists here.

With my new car i have a 3 year or 100,000 km waranty which affords me peace of mind. I know that if i wanted to sell in 4 years time i would get a decent price for it (its a Honda).

At the time everyone told me to buy a new car. I insisted that it doesn't make economic sense to buy a new car. In the end i realised they were right. This is Thailand and things rarely make sense.

[corkscrew]

If you can avoid buying any car that would be best. But, I take it that you live in a rural area.

We have two cars in BKK. I bought both of them new. I did not want to inherit someone's mechanical problems.

[Plus]

Some people buy new cars only and trade the old ones in, some people buy second hand only and trade them in later when they pass onto the thrid tier of drivers. Eventually they end up in Cmabodia, I think. We had both new and second hand and they all were ok. Newish toyotas and hondas don't have any mechanical problems to inherit.

[Thaipwriter]

Neer....i know your are located in Khon Kaen, have you ever seen the car auction that they hold at the car park at Tesco on Mittphap.

I stood and watched one day and i saw a 2004 Chevrolet optra 1.8lt go for 365,000 baht. I looked on the interent the same day and saw a similar model advertised for 499,000. This is a whopping saving and well worth checking out if your savvy with the lingo and cars.

good luck]

I've never seen it, mate. What day is it on?

I heard there was one near Lotus though.

Would there be the option of finance do you think?

I just happened to be passing tesco on Friday and an auction was taking place......

I have no idea how regular they have it, they had run out of brochures when i arrived and my thai skills were not good enough to find out when the next one is!

There are definately some bargains to be had, there is no doubt about that, although the auctioneer talks waaaayyyy to fast for my liking.

Auctions tend to be cash only affairs, i think finances would have to be in place before bidding.

When i manage to get more info on how regular the auctions are i will let you know...

[Gary A]

A couple days we were talking about second hand cars. One of the local Thai guys bought a nice looking Toyota (?) a year ago. My friend asked him if he had had any problems. The Thai told him that he put 40,000 kilometers and all he does is change the oil. My friend asked him how often he changes it and the guy told him once a year. He checks it and adds a little every once in a while. It will be interesting to see if it goes another 40,000 without a problem. LOL!

I wouldn't buy anything used unless it had service records with it and I knew it had not been wrecked.